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Galatians 3:18-20
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Galatians 3:18-20
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
18 For if the inheritance comes from the law,(A) it is no longer from a promise; but God bestowed it on Abraham through a promise.[a]
19 [b]Why, then, the law? It was added for transgressions, until the descendant[c] came to whom the promise had been made; it was promulgated by angels at the hand of a mediator.(B) 20 Now there is no mediator when only one party is involved, and God is one.(C)
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- 3:18 This refutes the opponents’ contention that the promises of God are fulfilled only as a reward for human observance of the law.
- 3:19–22 A digression: if the Mosaic law, then, does not save or bring life, why was it given? Elsewhere, Paul says the law served to show what sin is (Rom 3:20; 7:7–8). Here the further implication is that the law in effect served to produce transgressions. Moreover, it was received at second hand by angels, through a mediator, not directly from God (Gal 3:19). The law does not, however, oppose God’s purposes, for it carries out its function (Gal 3:22), so that righteousness comes by faith and promise, not by human works of the law.
- 3:19 The descendant: Christ (Gal 3:16). By angels: Dt 33:2–4 stressed their presence as enhancing the importance of the law; Paul uses their role to diminish its significance (cf. Acts 7:38, 53). A mediator: Moses. But in a covenant of promise, where all depends on the one God, no mediator is needed (Gal 3:20).
Galatians 3:18-20
New International Version
Galatians 3:18-20
New International Version
18 For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on the promise;(A) but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.
19 Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions(B) until the Seed(C) to whom the promise referred had come. The law was given through angels(D) and entrusted to a mediator.(E) 20 A mediator,(F) however, implies more than one party; but God is one.
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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New International Version (NIV) 
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